I'm a Loser, baby!
by Ashley.X.Rose
Summary: WARNING - Part of my BETH verse, if you're not a fan then turn away now. A lot has happened since their second visit to the Port of LA. The Losers find themselves against a familiar face, but a new enemy. Dedicated to Jensen's Petunia. R&R OC
1. Let's Begin At The End

**Well hello there strangers, it's been quite a while right? And for that I apologise deeply.**

**How are we all? Good I hope :)**

**I was originaly working on my Beth/Cougar slash when I started jotting this and all of a sudden it became a new fic, and I've decided to dedicate it to my best reviewer and amazing friend, JP. I hope you like it :)**

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"Beth! Beth! Beth can you hear me?"

Beth wasn't entirely sure how long she'd been out when she heard Jensen shouting her name. The gentle tapping against her face encouraged her to open her eyes, but as soon as they saw light they just wanted to close again. The pain in her head was excruciating, it felt as though there were little bolts of lights circling around her brain and trying to fight their way out.

Jensen didn't look too hot either from what Beth could make out. His face was bruised and bleeding, his glasses looked cracked. The young tech was crouched over her with his bloody hands cupping her face. His expression was tired, yet desperate. He looked as though he could cry at any second. The room was white, cold. No windows, and only one small door for an exit.

"Jensen?" she muttered, weakly. The sound of gunfire could be heard from all directions, Beth wasn't even sure Jensen heard her voice until he nodded his head to her.

"Come on, we have to get out of here," urged Jensen as he tried to pull Beth to her feet. Beth fought against it, she didn't want to move an inch.

"I can stay here," was Beth's fragile response. Jensen shook his head and hauled the young girl to her feet, wincing as she let out a painful cry.

"I'm so sorry, Beth," sobbed Jensen, letting his tears fall, "I'm going to get you out of here even if it kills me," Jensen supported Beth's waist with his left arm, pulling her right arm over his shoulder. They made it to the door and looked both ways down the corridor that stood in front of them. Empty.

"Where's my Dad?" Beth asked as Jensen lead them both toward a flight of stairs. Jensen didn't answer, making Beth pull herself free of the techie's support and taking a step back. Jensen's expression became more pained. He simply held out his hand for Beth to return to him. Beth refused to go further.

"Jake, where's my Dad?"

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**So how was that for a starter chapter?**

**I will try to update as often as possible, but at the moment expect one update per week. (Then if I manage to update earlier it will be a lovely surprise) :D**

**Glad to be back and with y'all. Love Ashley x x x**


	2. Happy Birthday Beth

**Apologies that this chapter is up a little later than I'd originally hoped. For some reason the last part was harder to write than I'd though, oh well... It's here now :D**

**Thank you all for your incredible patience, this is for all my reviewers from the first chapter.**

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47 Days Earlier …

"Happy Birthday, Little Lady."

Clay kept his voice quiet as he handed his daughter a small, white envelope. The father/daughter duo were sitting alone in a small diner which sat across from a busy highway. Their empty dinner plates sat in front of them.

"Thanks Dad," smiled Beth, taking the card off her father and opening it. She smiled to herself as she read the words inside.

_My Sweet Beth,_

_Happy 18th__ Birthday_

_I hope your day brings to you as much joy_

_as you've bought to me these past few months._

_I love you forever baby girl._

_Lots of Love,_

_Daddy x _

"Here.." said Clay, handing his daughter a small box. "It's not much but I thought you might like to keep these," Beth took the box and opened it carefully. Inside lay her fathers army tags.

"Really?" she asked as the smile grew on her face.

"Really." answered Clay, his smile grew with Beth's. "Now that our names have been cleared it's easy enough for me to ask for new ones. These ones belong to you. A part of me with you, forever."

A single tear rolled down Beth's cheek. She grabbed the napkin that came with her cutlery and gently dabbed her eyes before standing and taking a step over to the other side of the table, wrapping her father in a warm embrace.

"Thank you for making this the most perfect birthday ever," she whispered before re-taking her seat.

"It's not over yet," smirked Clay as he pulled out his wallet and laid down enough cash to pay for their meal. "Come on, let's head home."

...

Clay pulled up and parked outside Pooch and Jolene's house, the beautiful four bedroomed home that the Losers and Beth called home. Beth liked it for one specific reason, the neighbourhood was incredibly friendly. Everyone knew everyone; and everyone was lovely.

Inside, Jensen peered around the closed curtain in the front room just in time to see Clay and his daughter exit the Colonels car. He quickly whipped round and called out "They're back!" before sliding behind the large couch. Aisha and Pooch, after hearing Jensen's voice, swiftly glided to their chosen hiding places, Aisha behind a rather large bookshelf and Pooch behind the sliding door that lead into the large decorated dining room. Cougar followed closely after Pooch, quietly sliding the doors closed as Jolene made her way to the front door and opened it graciously, smiling at Beth and Clay as they approached.

"Hey," she smiled, pulling Beth in to her 8th birthday hug of the day, winking at Clay as he held his thumbs up "Did you guys have fun?"

Beth pulled herself loose of Jolene's hold, "It was amazing, that place did the best double cheeseburgers I've ever had in my life!"

Clay smiled at his daughter. "Only the best for my princess."

"Come on, Beth," smiled Jolene, ushering the young girl and her father inside. "I have something I need to show you."

"SURPRISE!"

Beth almost fell backwards into her fathers arms, the smile on her face so bright it could light the whole room.

"Happy Birthday," Clay whispered in her ear, "Told you the day wasn't over yet."

...

The birthday cake that Jolene had made was chocolate; Beth's favourite, with pink icing spelling the words 'Happy Birthday Beth'. After it had been cut and shared between everybody, the atmosphere became one of relaxation as everyone took seats around the house to settle down.

Beth made herself a drink and made her way into the back garden, making herself comfortable on a garden chair. She pulled her fathers army tags out of her pocket and fingered them, smiling to herself.

"Best birthday ever." These were the words that repeated in Beth's head. She had not felt this much a part of a family ever since the death of her mother.

The stars in the sky became clearer every second, and Beth felt as though she could fall asleep under them.

Cougars silent approach did not startle Beth, even though it probably should have. Beth didn't know whether to feel relaxed or wary that she almost always expected Cougar to be there. His presence always made her feel safe, and that she liked.

"They're beautiful aren't they? The stars." were Cougar's soft words.

Beth smiled, "I guess so, if you're in to that kind of thing,"

"Happy Birthday, amigo." Cougar slipped a small box into Beth's hand. Her blue eyes met his dark eyes.

"What's this?" she asked, curiosity obvious in her voice. "You didn't have to get me anything."

"I know. Open it."

Beth did as she was told. She gently lifted the lid off the box, her jaw dropping at what she saw.

The bracelet was silver, with eighteen tiny, shiny purple gems scattered across the chain.

"Wow," was all she could say. Cougar looked as though he didn't know what to say.

"Do you like it?" he asked after a moments silence.

His question was answered in the form of the biggest hug he had ever received. Beth dived from her chair, into his arms. Her arms wrapped around his neck.

"I love it," she whispered with a tear in her eye. She pulled herself back and handed the bracelet to Cougar.

"Would you…?"

"Of course." Cougar gently took hold of Beth's wrist, wrapping his gift around it and hooking it closed. Beth held her wrist up and stared.

"It's beautiful, thank you Cougar."

Beth pulled herself into another hug with the sniper, but instead of pulling away after a few seconds, Beth pulled the older man closer. Her breathing became a little faster, his was as calm as ever. When their faces were so close that they could feel each other breathing, Beth pulled herself up onto the balls of her feet so the two were eye to eye.

"De nada," were Cougar's final words before the two locked lips; Softly and slowly.

A few seconds passed before they separated. Cougar smiling at the sight of Beth's smile.

"Happy Birthday," he whispered softly in her ear before making his way back inside. Beth collapsed back into the garden chair, her smile only growing.

"Yep," she said surely, to herself, "Best birthday ever!"

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**Very fluffy I know, but you can't help but go 'Awwwww'**

**Until next time kids ...**

**Ashley xx**


	3. Just Another Day With The Losers

**Howdy y'all :) How are we all today? Good I hope...**

**Before we get this party started I'd just like to say thank you so much to all who have reviewed so far. I am thrilled to see that you like my Beth stories, I write them for all of you :)**

**Also, next chapter may be a while as it is my birthday in a couple of days and all my energy is going on a huge party as I am lucky enough to share a birthday with one of my best friends. So thank you in advance for what I know will be amazing patience.**

**So, here is chaper 3 (A bit longer than normal to keep you going) ...**

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"Any news?"

Clay looked up from the paper he was reading. Jolene's expression was one between hope and angst. Ever since she had heard about Max's twin all she had done was worry. Worry about her son; worry about Pooch; worry about all of the Losers, her extended family.

Clay threw her an apologetic look. "I'm sorry, Jolene. I've called in every favour I'm owed. It's like the guy never existed. Not even a name."

Jolene took a seat on the couch opposite Clay.

"You know, he'll never say it, but I know my man. The way he looks at me and our boy, he doesn't think we'll be safe until you find this guy. Is he right?"

"I don't know …"

"Don't lie to me, Franklin," Jolene's voice was soft, yet firm, and the fact that she had called the Colonel by his first name scared him half to death, "I've had enough of Pooch trying to sugar-coat this stuff. I just want an honest answer,"

Clay folded his paper and gently set it down on the coffee table in front of him, sitting slightly forward in his seat as he did so.

"There's a chance," Clay's voice was lowered, "that he could be looking for us, hell there's a chance he could already know where we are."

Jolene's expression dropped to one of fear.

"But…" Clay continued, "There's an equal chance that we'll never see him again. He was his brothers shadow. If I were him I'd use this as a chance to start fresh."

"But when are things ever that simple, eh Colonel?" Jolene laughed softly, it sounded genuine enough for Clay to believe she was okay. The Colonel relaxed back into his seat, looking over his shoulder at the clock that sat behind him. 11:48pm.

"How come you're still up?" asked Clay, noticing for the first time how tired Jolene looked.

"Couldn't sleep," she replied with a sigh, "Little man's having a bit of a restless night," She looked at her watch, "Speaking of which, he's due for a feed in a couple of hours so I'm going to try and grab some sleep. Goodnight Clay."

"Goodnight,"

And with that, Jolene took her leave. Clay flicked through his paper one last time before making his way upstairs. He wandered to the bedroom at the end of the corridor and silently opened the door. Beth was sprawled out across the bed on her front with both arms tucked under her pillow, he soft, steady breathing barely audible compared to Jensen's snoring. The tech slept on a makeshift bed on the floor next to Beth, both were dead to the world.

"Goodnight Beth," Clay whispered before closing the door as silently as it had been opened and then trudging to his and Aisha's shared bedroom, quietly sliding in and closing the door behind him.

...

The sweet smell of Jolene's homemade pancakes welcomed Beth when she opened her eyes the following morning.

"Jensen," she mumbled, gently thumping the floor to try and find and wake her sleeping friend. All she found was empty bed sheets. That was weird, Jensen almost always woke her up if he was awake first. Beth shrugged and dragged herself out of bed, gently rubbing her eyes before making her way downstairs.

"Good morning sleepy head," Jolene greeted, presenting Beth with a plate of syruped pancakes almost the second she stepped foot into the kitchen.

"Thanks," smiled Beth, taking a seat at the table next to little Theo's high chair.

It took Beth four large mouthfuls of the heaven that was Jolene's sweet, succulent pancakes to realise the silence throughout the house.

"Where is everyone?" she asked, taking a large sip of orange juice to wash down her breakfast. The other must have been out, Jensen and Pooch would never miss pancake breakfast.

"Special Ops stuff," Jolene replied with a shrug, plating herself up some breakfast and joining Beth at the table, "They got a call a few hours ago, seemed important. I've never seen your father move so fast."

Beth was curious, she resisted the urge to phone them to ask for the juicy details. Instead she just nodded and shrugged. If all else failed, Cougar would definitely inform her of all the gory details, or Jensen; actually, most likely Jensen.

"Mlerrgghha," gurgled Theo, followed by a giggle. The baby boy threw one of his toys, Beth subtly catching it before it hit the floor. Theo clapped as Beth handed him back his toy, this game would have gone on for hours if Jolene hadn't lifted her baby up into her arms.

"Bath time stinky boy," Jolene giggled along with her son before turning toward the bathroom. Beth finished off her pancakes, watering it down with another swig of orange juice.

After clearing her plate, Beth made her way back upstairs to get dressed, using Clay and Aisha's en suite bathroom as not to interrupt Theo's bath time.

"Eurgh," she said to herself, Aisha and her father were not doing a great job at keeping it tidy. There were towels all across the floor along with what looked like Aisha's underwear. The toothpaste carton lay across the sink, opened. Beth couldn't help but screw the lid back on, it was her pet peeve. The bin was overloading with what seemed to be empty bottles of shampoo and shower gel, most of them looked pink. Figures, Beth knew her father had always been relatively tidy. Beth chuckled to herself; Aisha's messy, who knew.

After cleaning her teeth and running a brush through her hair, Beth felt a surge of relief run through her that she had showered yesterday. No way in hell would she trust the goings on in her Dad and Aisha's shower, no one should.

She mentally reminded herself to leave a note for Jolene when they leave, recommending that the shower is bleached, a lot, before further use, and then threw some comfortable clothes on before making her way back downstairs.

...

To say that Beth was startled to see her father, Aisha, Jensen, Pooch and Cougar all crowded around the kitchen table when she set foot downstairs was a bit of an understatement. The team had never been _that _silent. Cougar, definitely; Pooch, sometime. But _all _of them entering the house without making a sound.

"This can't be good?" Beth's statement was more of a question, and it was aimed at her father. The Colonel was stood by the kitchen sink facing away from everybody, his eyes fixed on the window that lead out on to the back yard.

"He's out, Beth," Clay responded, not having to turn around to know that his daughter's eyes were glued to him. Beth looked around. Jensen and Cougar were sat at the kitchen table. Cougar's head was down, his hat covering his eyes. This was pretty normal, but the sight of Jensen made Beth shudder. He was silent for a start, and that never meant anything good, but he looked pale and his head was also dipped low. Jensen was sat across from Cougar, his head buried in his hands, he looked upset. Beth didn't like his expression one bit. Pooch was leant against the doorframe, arms crossed and head low. If Aisha hadn't of been looking her in the eye, the young girl feared she may have gone crazy.

Her father's significant other looked shocked, but her expression showed no fear that matched any of the rest of the team.

"Out?" Beth uttered, a little more than a whisper, "Who's out?"

There was silence, Beth waited patiently. She was shaking a little, no one wanted to say it.

After around thirty seconds, what felt like thirty minutes, Jensen looked up and met Beth's eyes for the first time since he arrived back.

"Max."

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**Opinions? Following chapters are going to include more action :)**

**P.s - Sorry for the evil cliffie ^^ Love you all, Ashley xx**


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